Monthly Archives: April 2011

Furball’s pals, Brooke and Tim, were kind enough to send Furball a Great Green Cat Toy to play with. When it arrived, Furball was ever the curious cat and immediately came over to investigate.

Who wouldn’t be interested? The Great Green Cat Toy is not your typical cat toy stuffed full of catnip. Instead, it’s an imaginative structure that challenges your cat’s natural instincts to explore, stalk and pounce.

In a nutshell, this cat toy consists of a large tube with a paw-sized window to reach three wooden balls inside. What makes it different from other “peek and paw” toys is that the entire toy moves when your cat plays with it.

So, instead of sitting still on the floor, when your cat interacts with the Great Green Cat Toy, it rolls and rotates, causing the wooden balls to come in and out of view. Purrfect for a cat’s hunting instincts.

The Great Green Cat Toy is also eco-friendly. It’s made from recycled and reusable materials, is completely recyclable and is 90% biodegradable. As well, the labels are printed on 100% recycled paper with soy based inks. And, to top it off, it’s made in the USA, crafted with love from Brooke and Tim.

As with all cat toys, you never know what your cat is going to like and unfortunately, Furball was not a gracious receiver of Brooke and Tim’s gift. He gave the Great Green Cat Toy an inspection and then creeped away from it.

Furball tends to be a little intimidated by cat toys that are bigger than a small rodent, so maybe this cat toy was just too big for him. Given some time, I’m pretty sure he would have had warmed up to it, especially when he gets into his crazy play mode. However, what makes the Great Green Cat Toy look like fun for a cat also makes it fun for a toddler, so I had to put the toy away.

If your cat’s not a fraidy cat and you don’t have a curious toddler, it’s worth checking out this toy because I’ve seen other cats really enjoy playing and wrestling with it. Here’s a video of a cat having fun with the Great Green Cat Toy.

Ever have your cat chew through the cords on your window blinds? Ever have them chew through the strings that hold the blind slats in place? What about through the cord for the expensive Hunter Douglas blinds at the place where you’re renting?

If your cat has been up to mischief gnawing its way through your home’s window coverings, you don’t have to resign yourself to drab cat-hair covered drapes. Blinds are still an option and not only that, they can also be eco-friendly blinds too.

When we moved into a new home a couple of years ago, we loved the big windows in all of the rooms. What we hadn’t factored in was that every window needed curtains or blinds. We realized we had a dilemma if we wanted blinds because Furball is a serial cord chewer.

I wanted to move past the perpetually raised blinds with the cords wrapped up and placed far out of feline reach. And, while curtains would work in a few rooms, I didn’t want to cover up my entire home with drapes. I wanted the simplicity of blinds without the risk of my cat eating the cords and strings.

Fortunately, I found a stylish solution that also happened to be eco-friendly. Comfortex makes a high-quality environmentally friendly blind that also looks modern and stylish with clean lines and none of that fussy rustic-blind look with strings and cords dangling everywhere. And, after two years of having the blinds in our home, I would give them two paws up for being cat-proof too.

Their roller shade comes in different levels of opacity and a variety of colours. I personally love the sheer look for blocking out bright sunlight, and you still get natural light and privacy. As well, instead of using string, the blinds are drawn using a very light silver chain. Both the blind and the chain tuck away nicely in a window frame.

I was a little skeptical originally about getting roller blinds. I couldn’t help but remember the nasty white vinyl ones we had in my childhood home. The Envision shades roll up nicely by pulling the chain. No need to pull and yank and hope the blind rolls up when you let go.

Besides being functional, practical, cat-proof and eco-friendly, the bottom line is that these blinds look damned good! Hope this helps you beautify your home in eco-friendly and cat-friendly style.

P.S. That’s not my home in the photo. Wish I was that colour-coordinated!

The Earth Day Sale is now officially over, but you can still get your copy of the ebook for the low price of only $5. You could easily pay that much for just one cat toy.

Happy Earth Day! It’s amazing to reflect that I’ve been writing this blog for almost three years now and it’s grown from just a handful of my cat-loving friends reading it to thousands of readers all over the world. Thank you so much for greening your cat’s lifestyle.

As a special thank you for Green Little Cat readers, the ebook version of “Make Your Own Cat Toys” is on sale at 50% off for Earth Day. Actually, it’s on sale for the next 10 days until May 2nd.

You’ll save 50% off the regular price of $5. For less than the cost of one un-green cat toy, you can learn how to make 52 eco-friendly toys and games for your cat by upcyling stuff you have around the house.

If you have ever purchased a fancy cat toy only to find Kitty preferred the bag it came in, this book is for you. Make Your Own Cat Toys shows you how to create new toys from old stuff in minutes. Have fun, save the planet and save money at the same time. Reducing your cat’s carbon paw print has never been this easy!

Save money and save the environment! For less than the price of a couple of fancy cat toys, your cat can have a new toy each week for a year.

Over 50 toy ideas to suit the different ways that cats love to play, such as catching, wrestling, chasing, swatting and more

Fast and simple for your busy lifestyle – 25 toys that can be made in 60 seconds with no special skills required

Ideal for new kittens with boundless energy and also for “lazy cats” with a relaxed approach to playtime

Plus, plenty of green tips and eco-friendly ideas for you and your pet

I wanted to give a big thank you to Wendy, a Green Little Cat reader, who sent me this great tip for cheap cheap natural clumping cat litter. Perhaps the more appropriate phrase here would be “cheep cheep” natural litter. If you’re looking for a low cost alternative to the World’s Best Cat Litter, then you might be surprised to learn that chickens have the answer to your search.

Wendy’s two cats have been using non-medicated chicken feed, or more specifically “chick starter” in their litter box. Chick starter, also known as game bird finishing crumbles, is mostly made up of corn, along with soybean meal, whole wheat and alfalfa and vitamins. Chick starter is readily available at all feed stores and usually costs about 20 to 30 cents per pound as compared to $1 or more per pound for the World’s Best Cat Litter.

Wendy was kind enough to go into detail about why chick starter makes a great natural clumping cat litter. She listed the pros and cons:

The Pros:

Cats like using it

Inexpensive cat litter alternative, also not taxed in some states

Clumps instantly and easily sifts through the litter scoop

Natural, edible

A little goes a long way

Helps control odors

The Cons:

There is a bit of tracking, but it’s not all over the house.

Puppies have been known to eat it.

Purchasing it can be awkward if a new store clerk doesn’t know what you need and asks what you are feeding. Wendy tells them, “Cornish game hens,” to keep it simple.

Wendy’s 2 cats are mostly indoor cats. She estimates that a 50 lb bag lasts at least 5-6 months. She sums it up really nicely, “There is no excuse for using clay when this is just as cheap.”

I also did an online search for other cat lovers using chick starter as an alternative natural cat litter. I found two posts from two different people who have used both layer crumbles and the World’s Best Cat Litter. Both found the two products to be very similar with the main difference being the price.

The news has been full of coverage on the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan. Because of the tremendous impact on the Japanese people, there’s been very little news about the injured and lost pets created by this natural disaster. Remember what happened with Katrina? Well, a similar thing is happening to the animals in Japan.

I’m all for helping people first, but I also believe that if we are able to, we should help the animals too. Imagine if your dear cat was separated from you. I know Furball would freak out. He hid under the couch for a day when we got hit with a very minor earthquake. I can’t imagine what he’d do if it was magnified exponentially, followed by a giant wave of water.

From Fortune Cat to Pikachu, cats are one of the most beloved and cherished animals in Japanese culture. In fact, there’s even a Cat Island located about 9 miles off the coast of Japan. It’s a popular tourist attraction because it’s got a huge population of well kept feral cats who outnumber the actual human residents. Cat Island was hit with 20-foot waves. Fortunately most of the residents and cats survived unscathed, but they really need aid and supplies.

If your heart and wallet are big enough, the American Humane Society is accepting donations to support local animal relief efforts in Japan. 100% of donations earmarked for Japan animal relief will go to helping animal victims in Japan. The American Humane Society is not even deducting administrative costs from the funds.

I also came across another way you can help simply by doing your regular shopping for natural pet products. I signed up as an affiliate for the Only Natural Pet Store because they occasionally send me coupons that I can share with my readers. This month, they’re rallying everyone together to help pets in Japan. The Only Natural Pet Store will donate 5% from all sales generated from referral websites to animal relief organizations in Japan.

So, if you already shop from them or if you’ve always been curious to try them out, please click on the banner to the left and shop away. 5% of your purchase will help homeless and injured pets in Japan.